Layoffs at Wefox

Just over two months ago, Julian Teicke, the co-founder and CEO of Wefox, criticized the tech industry for the recent wave of layoffs. Then, in late December, Teicke was interviewed for an article where he said that the company was looking to grow sales without increasing resources, which may lead to more pressure on employees. “Not everyone is willing to give so much for the company and will possibly leave,” the article stated.

Now, according to a report by Süddeutsche Zeitung, Wefox has begun shrinking its workforce of around 1,400 employees. The layoffs were confirmed by a company spokesperson and will impact “less than ten percent.” Based on a review published on Kununu, a Glassdoor-like platform, layoffs started earlier – before Christmas.

Over the years, Wefox, which raised ~$1.3 billion, promised a lot but delivered very little. The company’s premium growth is driven by various acquisitions, not because of a better product or distribution model. One acquisition involved Italian insurance broker Mansutti – the purchase price was around €350 million according to a report by a German media outlet. Of course, M&A is a popular insurance strategy for growth among traditional insurance companies, but Wefox keeps saying they are different than traditional insurance companies.